Introducing “A”
the most recent member of the giga-yacht club
No one has yet been allowed to take any photographs of the interior, but I understand it is as unusual as the exterior design, and includes some very special teak paneling.
Conspicuous over consumption? Absolutely. Insanely expensive? Oh yes. Most of the final prices are carefully kept secret. Either that, or no one actually knows how much they cost.
Introducing “A” - the most recent member of the giga-yacht club, and to put things in perspective, the fuel tank is 757,000 liters. Diesel fuel costs around €1.40 per liter currently, so it would cost just over €1 million to fill the fuel tank. $1.4 million US just to fill the tank. That amount of fuel will last 15.5 days at cruising speed. So the cost of building the ship becomes a little academic when the running costs are taken into consideration. I am exaggerating slightly as I have no doubt they are not paying retail for the fuel, but you get the idea. Seeing as the owner also owns one of the largest coal companies in the world, I very much doubt the cost of fuel is an issue.
“A” is 118 meters long, and from whichever angle you see her is perfect, not a poor line in sight. I understand there are three swimming pools aboard, an owner’s suite, 6 guest suites and accommodations for 42 staff, which includes 5 guest’s staff.
It is difficult to estimate the final cost of “A” but conservatively - 150 million Euros? The owner is Andrey Melnichenko, a Russian energy billionaire and financier. Mr. Melnichenko owns some pretty luxurious real estate on the Cote D’Azur, but I am also hearing a rumour that he is in fact the mystery buyer of La Leapolda.
“A” was built by Blohm & Voss, in Germany, and was previously designated SF-99, then “Sigma,” when the design went over 99 meters. The design was by Phillipe Starck, and has come in for some considerable criticism. You either love her, or hate her. The absence of any protuberances was one of his goals, and as you see from the photos, everything blends perfectly. In Mr. Starck’s words,
"We worked for five years to avoid any small details like that which are common in boats… to finally have a boat which looks like the computer rendering. Such a boat is the vision, the dream."
The design detailing includes the tenders. (For those of you without a nautical bent, tenders are the small boats used to ferry the owners from ship to shore, fetch booze and cigars, or whatever else may be needed from the main land etc). In fact the tenders are works of art in their own right. Also designed by Phillipe Starck, there are two aboard, along with a high speed RIB by Pascoe. 11 meters long and built specifically for “A” by Vaudrey Miller in New Zealand. One is an open design, the other with a cabin, or “Limo-style.”
All in all a beautiful boat. Radically different design certainly, and it is rather entertaining to listen to the gossip about the various billionaires who have been planning a competing boat since this one was first announced. No matter what Mr. Starck might say about not caring about the size, it is all about out-doing your peers. Nothing says “I have a bigger one than you do,” like actually having a bigger one, although, in this case, it is just a “better,” one.
All in all a beautiful boat. Radically different design certainly, and it is rather entertaining to listen to the gossip about the various billionaires who have been planning a competing boat since this one was first announced. No matter what Mr. Starck might say about not caring about the size, it is all about out-doing your peers. Nothing says “I have a bigger one than you do,” like actually having a bigger one, although, in this case, it is just a “better,” one.
Source:
Photos, Mark Knowles
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